Trying to be Strong
by Overrunner
Summary: Sasha is a mixed blood of the Ōtsutsuki and the Uchiha Clan. After her families disappearance and the massacre of her clan, Sasha returns from the Land of Iron to reintegrate back into Konoha. Her hope is to one day meet with Itachi so she can find out the real reason why he spared her. To do that Sasha will first have to become a Ninja. Alongside everyone else she left behind.


Hiruzen turned around calmly to meet the gaze of the uneasy Chuunin. He had been observing the students walking to school and taking in the beauty of his village. Konohagakure, the village hidden in the leaves. He was Hiruzen Sarutobi,the Third Hokage.

He had been thinking of the words an old friend of his had spoken to him when the Chuunin barged in.

"Yes? What is it?" Hiruzen asked, meeting the young mans gaze as he raised his hand in a manner that meant for him to calm down. Hiruzen wanted to hear the full of his report without the Chuunin passing out in front of him.

"Lord Hokage, a young woman arrived at the gates today."

"A young woman?"

"Yes Sir. She couldn't have been 15 or 16. She requested permission to enter the village."

Hiruzen nodded, eyes knit together in thought as he rubbed his thumb along his pipe. Mulling over the current information he was given, he didn't see why there was need to inform him of this. But then again he also knew that there was more to come. Hiruzen nodded for the Chuunin to continue.

"When we asked for ID she presented a Genin ID card. I was ordered to report to you after the guards found out that she was deduced dead for the last five years."

Now that was reason enough to cause alarm. "Where is she now?"

"She is still at the gate Sir. She was asked to come with them to the T&I building for questioning but refused and requested to speak with you instead."

"Bring her here. Let me meet this stranger."

"Yes Sir!"

Hiruzen took a seat and folded his hands, looking down at his desk in thought. He could only guess who it was. It wasn't common for a Genin to run away from the village. If one looked at it technically it was unheard of. There were many instances where adolescent children would run away from home or would explore too far out the walls of Konoha.

But other than that he could only think of one Genin who had left the walls and never did return.

There was a light knock on the door and Hiruzen called for them to enter.

The door opened slowly as the former Genin walked in. The Chuunin's assessment of her was accurate. She couldn't have been more than 15 or 16. Stopping before his desk, she bowed in respect to him and he dipped his head in return.

Calmly lifting his hand to signal the Black Ops Agents outside to stand down, he gave her a warm smile. She was no threat to him. Hiruzen knew that for a fact.

The last time he had seen her she had barely turned 10 before she disappeared. She had grown a lot in the five years she had been gone. He barely recognized her now.

She had long dark brown hair that went past her shoulders and was parted out of her face. She wore a sleeveless dark green vest over an armour plate and a fishnet shirt with some dark green shorts and black shinobi sandals. She had to stand at at least 5"4' now. On her waist was a pair of Katana.

The handle was wrapped up in dark green cloth and the sheathe was black. Engraved upon it was markings that matched the same symbols of the Land of Iron. It was a land of highly skilled and experienced swordsmen, the Iron Samurai. The Katana made Hiruzen raise a questioning eyebrow to which the former Genin smiled sheepishly.

Her Kunai Holster was strapped to her right thigh and from a brief glance Hiruzen noticed a weapons pouch on the back of her waist. Both were new and in good condition so he could only assume she came upon a weapons shop on her return trip home.

Very well toned and grown with an hour glass body, Hiruzen wouldn't be surprised if she had caught the eye of most young men in the village on her way here. Her skin was a paler shade of crescelin, a trait she no doubt inherited from her mother but by no means was unattractive. However what must've flustered the sentries were her eyes. It was because of those eyes that confirmed who she was to Hiruzen.

They were a light shade of Lavender with no pupils and had 3 ripples. In each eye on the first ripple were 2 tomoe of the Sharingan. The pale lavender confirmed her Byakugan, her tomoe the Sharingan and the ripples her Rinngean. She was Sasha Uchiha, a young prodegy of the Uchiha clan who had disappeared the day after the clans murder.

Not even the Aburame or the Inuzuka clan could find her after she disappeared. She had been highly skilled for her age, much like her cousin Itachi and her brother. But it was because of the fact that not even the neighboring villages could find her that the search was called off years ago and she was presumed dead.

Kneeling down she unslung her bag and calmly searched through it. When she had found the desired item from her bag, Sasha stood up and presented it to Hiruzen.

It was identical to the Katana she had except the fact it was a knife. The sheathe was also black and the handle was wrapped in a dark green cloth. Carved upon the sheathe was the engraving of the Three Wolves Mountains, the home of the Iron Samurai.

"A gift from the General of the Land of Iron. My Teacher, Mifune."

Taking the dagger into his hands, Hiruzen bowed his head in gratitude, receiving a similar bow before unsheathing the blade halfway. It was a beautiful silver that glinted in the sunlight. Any craftsman could tell this was a genuine blade made in the Land of Iron, a weapon worthy of the Samurai. A great gift to any Kage.

Sheathing the dagger, Hiruzen placed it upon his desk before meeting the quiet girls gaze.

"You've grown Sasha. Enough that the village may have forgotten your name but not enough that your family would forget it."

Giving him a closed eyed smiled, Sasha tilted her head in a teasing manner. "Oh? You make it sound like I wanted to disappear Lord Hokage."

Hiruzen chuckled lightly. "You've always been mischievous Sasha. From what I remember you used to love hide and seek."

Nodding, Sasha let out a small laugh. "I guess I was mischievous." Looking outside, Sasha's smile broadened. "But it's no fun if the seeker gives up."

Closing her eyes she took a deep breahethe, relishing the air of Konoha as Hiruzen watched her with a small smile. She had missed this. The air of the Land of Iron had been cold and the few brief times she had been through the Land of Wind it was nothing but hot and moist air. Letting the breathe go she opened her eyes and calmly met the Hokage's gaze. "I'm back now."

"Indeed you are Sasha. Indeed you are." His smile faded and his expression turned serious as he rubbed his pipe in thought. "I'm sure you know this but just because you used to live here 5 years ago doesn't mean you can return as if nothing happened. You will be escorted sometime this week to the T&I building to be interrogated by Inoichi Yamanaka."

Sasha bowed her head respectfully. "I understand Lord Hokage."

Graetful she understood, his small smile returned and he leaned back into his chair. "Now that that is out of the way is there anything I can do for you?"

Sasha's gaze left his as it wandered down to her bag on the floor. Many emotions swam in her eyes as she sought out the right words. "Well for one I need a new ID, Lord Hokage. And two I'd like to reacquire my status as a ninja-in-training in Konoha."

"That can be arranged." Pulling a blank scroll from his desk, Hiruzen filled it out before setting it down upon his desk. "Anything else?"

Sasha's smile which she had been holding since her arrival slowly faded away until Hiruzen saw it. The sadness. The longing. She wanted to see her family again.

Lifting her gaze back up to his she smiled weakly. "Could I possibly trouble you in helping me find residency here in Konoha?"

"Of course."

Bowing in respect, Sasha leaned down to pick up her bag and Hiruzen grabbed the scroll. A Chuunin appeared in a puff of smoke before the Hokage and bowed. Sasha didn't bat an eyelash at his appearance.

"Yes Lord Hokage?"

"Please escort Sasha here to the Ninja Academy. She will be joining Iruka's class as of today. And please see to it Iruka get's this." Hiruzen ordered as he held the scroll out to the Chuunin.

The Chuunin's eyes widened a bit in surprise and he cast a brief glance at Sasha before bowing. "Yes Lord Hokage. Please come along."

Sasha bowed to Hiruzen once more before following after the Chuunin. Watching her leave until the door closed, Hiruzen stood up and looked outside in the direction of the Uchiha district.

' _Not once did she ask about her family. Sasha you have grown. In more ways than I could have expected._ '

 **Sasha POV**

Being back in the village after so long was nostalgic. After five years everything felt new and exciting. But after looking around not much had really changed. Same stores, same vendors, same people. What should I have expected? It was Konoha for you. Home sweet home.

The chuunin kept giving me curious looks but stopped after I met his gaze once. The whole walk to the Academy was quiet aside the light bustle through the streets of people passing by and vendors selling their goods. I wasn't complaining though. It was peaceful.

It wasn't long before we arrived at the academy. We passed a couple classrooms as we walked inside before we arrived at the one I was to join. The Chuunin held his hand up for me to wait where I was before opening the door. I heard him whisper a few words to someone before he walked out and left me where I was.

Someone leaned out the doorway to greet me. I'm guessing this was Iruka-Sensei. Head of brown hair in a ponytail, kind smile and a neat scar across his nose. He beckoned me inside to which I complied.

"Class we have a new student joining us today. I know its so late in but she'll be graduating with the rest of you. Treat her with respect while she's here."

All eyes were on me. It wasn't the least bit unsettling. I'd been in a situation like this before. Except it wasn't with Genin of Konoha it was with experienced trainees preparing to be Samurai in the Land of Iron. But all in all the feeling of being an outsider still lingered.

"Would you like to introduce yourself?" Iruka-Sensei asked.

Nodding, I unslung my bag and set it down at my feet before looking over the class. No doubt I'd be seeing a lot of them from here on out. Fresh faced, snot nosed, inexperienced and weak Genin. Hell I'd be put into a squad with any of them. They had my respect though. They looked tough for rookies.

I recognized a few here and there but three faces really stood out amongst the class however. Three people I haven't seen in 5 years and had missed dearly. Hinata Hyūga, Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki.

I grew up with them most of my life. Sasuke is my cousin and while Hinata isn't family by blood she's still my cousin and practically my little sister. As for Naruto I took it upon myself to be someone that didn't irrationally hate him like the village did. Mother wanted me to be his friend.

Out of all three of them though only Hinata seemed to remember me at first sight. Naruto had a curious look on his face but the vibe I got was that he was totally oblivious to who I was.

Sasuke was glaring at me and when I glanced at him I swear his scowl grew worse. It wasn't an "I hate you look", more like a "not another one" look. And from the way most of the girls were glaring daggers at me it wasn't hard to deduce he was the class crush. I'm not surprised though. Naruto never saw my eyes because of the transformation Jutsu. As for Sasuke...

Hopefully the name would jog their memory. If I was going to call Konoha home once more then I really needed to be on good terms with them again.

"My name is Sasha Uchiha. Pleased to meet you all."

As I expected both boys were shocked by the name and I could see gears were turning now. Sasukes scowl remained but his eyes softened slightly. I could tell he was skeptical it was me. I had disappeared five years ago. For all he knew I could be an imposter. And maybe he didn't remember me because of that night?

Naruto however was ecstatic. A big grin had spread across hisface and he looked ready to burst from his seat which was earning him strange looks from his classmates. I didn't like that. It was bad enough he was shunned by the village, Naruto didn't deserve the same treatment from his classmates.

One of the reasons I'd wanted to be his friend was because Mother told me he used to be attacked just for being who he was. Needless to say I was defensive of him. I decided to humor him.

Squinting at him, I walked up the steps to his aisle and propped my hands on his desk. It wasn't a surprise he sat alone. "You look familiar. I know you from somewhere?"

His smile dropped. I could see it now. He was thinking, ' _Did she really forget me?_ '

"Oh yes I remember you now. You're that blonde knucklehead for a friend I had when I was younger."

Naruto's brilliant smile returned almost instantly.

"I believe you had a name too. What was it? Oh yes," As much as I tried to keep the act up, it was hard considering I had missed him. His name was soft as it left my lips so I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't hear me. "Naruto."

That did it for him. All self restraint gone, Naruto sprang from his seat and jumped into me for a big hug. If it weren't for the fact I had visibly seen his muscles tensing I wouldn't have expected it so I was able to keep my balance.

"You're back Sasha! It's been too long teme!" He happily cheered although under the the volume in his voice I could detect a bit of sadness and relief. He was genuinely happy to see me.

The way we held each other was different too. While my hug was soft and my arms wrapped around his back in a manner an old friend gives, he clung to me, his arms and legs wrapped tightly around me, fearful of letting go.

"How does she know Naruto?"

"Did you hear what she said? _Uchiha_? I thought Sasuke was the last one."

Letting go of Naruto, I grinned at him and winked while pointing my right index finger up. It was an old gesture that meant Ichiraku's ramen. He nodded before I walked back over to Iruka-Sensei who seemed to approve of me rekindling an old friendship in the middle of his class.

"Questions?" I asked calmly. Hands shot up left and right.

I laughed and turned to Iruka-Sensei for help. He chuckled before stepping forward. "Alright class. We're not gonna ask too many question today. But if and when she calls on you, I want you to introduce yourselves before you ask your question. Understood?"

"Yes Sir."

Iruka-Sensei nodded at me and stepped back. I looked around before nodding at a student in a hoodie."You. The one with the ninken pup on his head."

"Inuzuka Kiba. This is my partner Akamaru." He gestured to the pup on his head which let out a bark in acknowledgement. "Are you really Uchiha or were you just saying that?"

"Yes. Uchiha was my birth clan. They raised me to be who I am today."

I nodded at a rather plump looking student munching on potato chips. The devillish delicacies. "Akamichi Choji! I'm not fat! Where have you been all these years since you're now joining our class? Was there good food there?"

' _So we got a food lover eh?_ ' "Never said you were. As for where I've been... it's a nation to the far East. It borders Sunagakure; the Village hidden in the Sand. It's called the Land of Iron."

Of course they'd have heard of it but I'd be surprised if any of them knew anything aside the basic facts and legends about the Land of Iron.

I nodded at the next one so I didn't have to continue. My place was here in Konoha now and I didn't want to talk about the Land of Iron. I still missed Mifune-Sensei.

"Nara Shikamaru." The ponytail grumbled. "What's with you eyes?"

Almost all the hands dropped due to his question. ' _So_ _that's_ _what they wanted to know eh_?'

"My eyes are like this because of both my families Kekkei Genkai. I have the Sharingan of the Uchiha Clan, the Rinnegan of the Ōtsutsuki as well as the Byakugan."

When I saw Hinatas hand up I couldn't help but smile. Speaking up wasn't exactly her forte but any and all attempts were good on her part.

"Hinata?"

"U-um... s-so... a-are you Hyūga?"

I don't think Hinata was fully aware of where I stood amongst the Hyūga whenever I came to visit. My mother was one of them so naturally they accepted me but neither of us were Hyūga by blood. Mother was adopted into the Hyūga when she was younger.

"No. My Mother was accepted by the Hyūga but by blood I'm not Hyūga."

"Aburame Shino. So how do you have the Byakugan?"

' _No wonder he was making me nervous._ _He's_ _an Aburame._ ' "I inherited it from my mother."

"Who's your mother?" A blonde asked snidely, not even waiting for me to call on her. "You make it sound like we should know her?"

"Well I'd think you would seeing as I said her name earlier." I replied calmly, not letting her get to me. I remembered her. Ino Yamanaka. She didn't used to be so rude as a child. I met her on more than one occasion while seeing her Father for mental counseling as a favor to my Father.

When her and the rest of her classmates gave me confused looks, I swallowed a stinging rebuke and turned to the rest of the class. "Her name is Ōtsutsuki Taelia."

Eyes widened at my statement. To be fair it wasn't everyday you meet the daughter to the person who was the Third and Fourth Hokages Assistant. Not many knew this but my Mother was also one of the best practicioners in the Gentle Fist technique, second to only Hiashi.

Her skill and prowess as a Kunoichi was widely admired throughout the world. I liked to think as a child it was due to her abilities as a Kunoichi that her fame spread but I knew better now. It was because of her knack for surviving assassinaiton attempts and evading capture throughout her life that her fame had spread.

I think that's how she met my Father too. During another attempt on her life.

Shaking my head to clear it of the thought, I looked around. Weren't many other people left.

"You." I nodded at a pinkette in the front row.

"Haruno Sakura. Are you related to Sasuke?"

The question caught me off guard. I knew it was coming but needless to say I wasn't really prepared for it whether it was asked here or outside the class. But it was out there now and everyone there was giving me a fixed stare including Iruka-Sensei who was standing behind me.

Uncle Fugaku, the last head of the Uchiha clan would argue with his brother; my Father Ikaku many times a week throughout my life about my place in the Clan. My Father had three defenses against my Uncle's claims of my not belonging. And they remained his only defenses for the 10 years that the both of them were in my life.

First and foremost was that my Father was Uchiha and therefore I was Uchiha by blood. The second defense that would always defend this claim as well as mostly end the argument were my eyes. The Sharingan and the Rinnegan, tokens, pride and relics of the Uchiha clan.

But third and what would always tear at my Uncle was what my Father would say to him:

"If she's not an Uchiha then she can live with the Hyūga where I, as her Father, will know she will truly be loved by her clan. She can stay with the Hyūga where I know she'll grow up to be a true Shinobi. I'm disappointed however that you, my Brother and my Clan Leader would not want to see your niece grow up as a Leaf Shinobi representing the Uchiha."

It took a moment but I managed to speak. But it wasn't in reply to the pinkette's question. I looked right in his eyes as I turned to Sasuke. "Well Cousin? Are we related?"

Sasuke didn't asnwer. He held my gaze for a few moments before dipping his head slightly.

Inwardly sighing, I pinched the bridge of my nose. 5 years and you'd think he'd be willing to speak to me. If he hated me for leaving I don't blame him.

One of my biggest regrets was that I didn't take him with me. Instead I had just left Sasuke here to mourn by himself. To deal with what his brother had done.

We had been close as children. Despite the fact we weren't siblings and what his Father thought of me he was like my brother. We did almost everything together. Train, eat together, walk to school together, study together and even at times sleep together.

My reasons for leaving had been selfish. I wanted to see my Family again so to do that, I left the only one I quite possibly had left. I left hoping they'd come after me. And now Sasuke and I might not ever be that close ever again.

"Yes. Our Fathers were brothers."

The whole class including me looked at Sasuke in surprise. His voice had been quiet but was loud enough for everyone to hear. There were a few whispers amongst the class and the silence was becoming louder by the second. To break the tension, Iruka-Sensei cleared his throat and stepped forward.

"Enough questions. Welcome Sasha. This week the Graduation Test is going to take place. There'll be a written test and a test on the Shadow Clone Jutsu. I'm sure you'll do fine but make sure to study all the same."

Nodding, he beckoned me to take a seat and I noticed Naruto eagerly waving me over to him. Letting out a small laugh, I picked my bag up and walked over to his desk, taking the seat on his right.

As soon as I was situated, Iruka-Sensei continued his lesson from earlier. I listened for a few seconds and figured out he was talking about Chakra flow and control. The lesson continued on like this, Iruka-Sensei explaining the principles of chakra control and how it could be amplified or used in combat.

Chakra flow and useage in combat was childs play for me. Samurai in the Land of Iron were taught its use like Genin except they only ever used Chakra in Taijutsu. They specialized in Kenjutsu; the way of the sword. Mifune-Sensei was a master of Iaido, a style of Kenjutsu that he taught me. I'd seen him slice through a clump of trees and sheathe his sword before the trees ever flew off their stumps.

It was a style that required speed and precision. It was a potentially lethal form of Kenjutsu but its purpose was used in non-lethal attacks, more for wounding an opponent rather than killing them.

"... and therefore increasing the strength and lethality of your blade. There are special blades out there called Chakra blades that can amplify the technique as well. I know only a few Shinobi out there that wield such blades."

Naruto seemed to be bored and that was growing increasingly obvious to his classmates and teacher. Before long he'd be openly scolded. Unless I could keep his attention for the next 3 minutes.

"Sensei?"

"Yes Sasha?"

"Would it be alright if I demonstrated this?"

Iruka-Sensei blinked at me in surprise. A small smile crossed his face and he nodded."If you're capable of it then by all means step forward. If you could please only demonstrate channeling chakra through your weapons. Any other demonstrations such as casting chakra would have to wait for a later time."

Nodding, I nudged Naruto to make sure he was awake before standing up, Katana in hand.

Stepping in front of the class once more, I smiled lightly. "As Iruka-Sensei said the ability to channel chakra through your weapons requires a good amount of chakra control and focus. I don't use that word lightly. FOCUS. Channeling chakra into a simple specially made Kunai is very difficult for even Chuunin at times. It all depends on the Shinobi implementing the technique, not just the size of the blade."

Holding my Katana out in front of me by the sheathe, I gripped the handle before unsheathing the blade. Some of them all stared at the blade in wonder. It was a beautiful silver blade, same as the dagger I had gifted the Hokage.

Setting the sheathe at my feet, I gripped the handle in both my hands before closing my eyes. It took a few seconds to gather my chakra but when I opened my eyes, I could see the beautiful blue chakra radiating off the blade.

I had caught everyone's attention now, including Narutos. Doing a few practice swings, I held the blade behind my back in one hand as I knelt down to pick the sheathe up. Once it was in hand, I sheathed my Katana and held it by my side proudly.

While my classmates all stared at me in admiration, a few people were giving me different looks. A couple girls were frowning. Haruno and Yamanaka looked like they wanted to say something, Iruka-Sensei looked suspicious and Sauke was glaring at me now.

My plan had worked though. The couple minutes I had needed had passed and class was over. Naruto had leapt from his seat and bounded over to me with my bag in hand. Giving it to me, he grabbed my wrist and dragged me from the room before even Iruka-Sensei could stop us.

Naruto dragged me all the way to Ichirakus Ramen Stand. Tenshi, the noodle chef stood behind the counter as if expecting Naruto.

"Well well Naruto who is this? A friend from school?"

"Not just any friend Tenshi! You remember her! It's Sasha!" Naruto boasted as if expecting the older man to remember me. I bet he'd remember my money if it was glued to my face though.

He gave me a long stare before a smirk spread on his face. "Ah! I remember you! You used to come here every day with Naruto when you was younger. Been some time. Where you been kid? I'll cook your specialty right up. 4 meat deluxe right?"

' _Beef, Chicken, Pork, Fish!'_ My mouth watered at the smell of ramen. As much as I tried to find a replacement for Ichirakus Ramen, I failed every time. You couldn't beat it. The taste was just sentimentally better here than anywhere else.

"That's right ol' man! Better make sure it's all four types of meat and not three! Sasha just got back today and she deserves to have her order right!" Naruto barked, grinning at me as we took a seat.

"Been away huh? Well then _Sasha_ consider this bowl on the house. You too Naruto!" Tenshi said as he cooked up our bowls.

Naruto let out a cheer which caught the attention of a few passerbys. They gave Naruto dark looks and as they figured out who he was, a couple of them even starting to converge on him. They stopped when I stood up from the seat, gripping the hilt of my Katana that I had strapped to my waist on our way here.

I don't know if it was the Katana or the eyes that scared them off because even I knew that a mere teenager; Ninja or not, wouldn't have scared people off that easily.

"Sasha? What's wrong?" Naruto asked as Tenshi presented our bowls of ramen.

"Nothing Naruto. Just adjusting the straps on my Katana." I lied, lowering my hand to said straps to make it look like I had been moving the sheathe. Sitting back down, we both said our thanks as we broke the chopsticks apart before digging in.

"Hey Sasha."

I turned my head to him and raised my eyebrow since my mouth was full. One of us had to remember our manners.

"Are you staying now? You're not going to leave again right?" He asked, hope in his eyes and noodles sticking out of his mouth.

Swallowing my mouthful I nodded. "As far as I know Naruto, Konoha is my home now. I don't plan on leaving anytime soon."

"Awesome!" Naruto cheered. I swivelled around in my chair, arms extending up as if stretching and I let out a small grunt.

To Naruto and Tenshi I was stretching. But to anyone approaching who could see my eyes took my warning. And no one dared to disturb Naruto for the rest of the night.

 **Night**

"Goodnight Naruto." I repeated for the 7th time, letting out a goodnatured laugh as I finally closed the door.

Walking down the stairs I couldn't help but yawn as I looked around. The hotel I was thinking of staying at wasn't more than 10 minutes walk from here and wouldn't take long to run there. But I felt like walking. I haven't been home for Five years and I wanted to relish in the fact I was home.

I activated my Byakugan the moment I sensed their presence. It wasn't hard to tell they were there. I was just a little surprised they would come for me so soon.

Unsheathing my Katana I spun on my heel and sliced through the first Kunai before snatching my hand out to catch the second one right behind it. The two halves of the first blade clattered to my feet as the resonating chakra on my Katana began to fade.

Three ANBU.

"The Hokage has ordered us to take you to the T&I building immediately." One of the ANBU spoke, crouched beside two other ANBU who had Kunai drawn."But first we would ask you to disarm yourself of all your weapons except your Katana."

"Why am I allowed to keep my Katana?" I ask as I sheathed my blade, deactivating my Byakugan as well.

"Hokage's orders are to let you hold onto them. Anything else you must turn over."

Bowing my head I unstrapped my Kunai holster and plucked the weapons pouch from my belt before holding them both out to the approaching ANBU.

They took them quickly as an Agent placed a hand on my shoulder and teleported us away.

When the smoked cleared I looked around to see that we were in a dark room with a one way glass mirror and metal table with two metal chairs on either side with the lone lightbulb hanging over the table. I'd been in this room before.

Almost 12 years ago my father had taken me here after a failed kidnapping attempt to talk to Inoichi Yamanaka.

My brother had seen a man who was identified as a thug from one of the Fire nation's villages kidnap me from my room and leap out the window. He never made it outside the Uchiha district when my brother stabbed him to death.

Ironic that I return here as a possible enemy and not a kind visit to see if the bad guys had done anything traumatic to my mental state.

The ANBU guided me to a seat and had me sit down before taking his place at one corner of the room. Counting him there was four ANBU agents in the room.

The door opened before I could so much as activate my Byakugan. Turning to greet the new arrival, I couldn't help but smile at the sight of my old therapist.

He too bore a smile as he stepped over to greet me, arms outstretched. "Sasha."

I stood up and gave him a hug to which he finished by wrapping his arms around me. "Inoichi."

This was how we used to start our sessions 12 years ago. As a child I loved physical contact when it camed to expressing emotion. And it seems after 5 years I still liked to do that.

Stepping back from each other he tilted my head up with his hand to examine me. The last time I'd seen him was a week before the massacre. Our sessions after 7 years had went from weekly to monthly. My parents had thought he was a good outlet for me.

"You're late."

"By five years." I chuckled.

"Well you know what they say, " _better late than never_ "."

I nodded, completely agreeing with him. "Indeed."


End file.
